Working Tirelessly at the Soul Dog Tribal Lands Clinic
This weekend I observed people working tirelessly for animal welfare. I left Denver early in the morning and drove down to Dennehotso, AZ to document a Soul Dog Spay/Neuter Clinic. They began setting up on Friday - turning an entire gymnasium into a vet hospital. I helped set up a registration desk, a surgery area, a recovery area, and lines and lines of kennels in the center. Setup began well before I arrived around 6pm and went until my guess is about 9pm, but I didn’t have it in me to stay more than a couple of hours on that first evening. While some work tirelessly, I work till I’m tired.
Earlier in the day, volunteers had gone to the local Animal Control and gathered dozens of unwanted puppies and kittens who would otherwise have been euthanized. These babies, who have no sense of bodily control, were messy, smelly, loud, and of course adorable. The number of transferred animals would multiply when 2 pregnant dogs decided that now would be a good time to give birth. They would all be transferred on Sunday to Denver, taken on a 9 hour drive in a hot van across 100 degree deserts and mountains by two people whom I did not envy - I mentioned loud, messy, and smelly, right? Once in Denver they would either live at the shelter in Fort Lupton or be placed in foster homes until they were ready for adoption.
These many litters of puppies and kittens are the exact reason why Soul Dog offers these clinics. Tribal Lands in the Four Corners area are extremely remote. The nearest veterinarians are often hours away, and without nearby resources, spaying and neutering pets is not a priority. “I called a vet and they wanted $120 for a kitten to be spayed, people need to spend that money on groceries!” one client expressed. Soul Dog offers the services for a suggested $20 donation, which not everyone can pay, but no one will be turned away for that reason.
A curious client observes as her grand-dog gets neutered.
Saturday morning was spent cleaning the crates of the babies and mommas who were rescued from Animal Control, and placing them out of the way. The new mommas and their pups needed a quiet space to themselves, which was found in the gym’s storage room. Once that was done, we began checking pets in, weighing them, and finding them a kennel. Surgeries began around 9am and went until everyone was taken care of. In addition to the sterilizations, there was a kitten who needed an eye removed, and a dog that needed a leg amputation.
Sunday morning we opened the gym doors and were walloped in the face with the kittiest and puppiest smells you could imagine. We donned gloves and got to work moving them from their messy crates to their travel carriers and loading them into the van. One of the vet techs began hosing down the crates so they could be used by arriving patients, and garbage cans were filled with used puppy pads, soggy paper towels, and spent litter. You can only imagine why rescues need your old bath and hand towels and bed sheets.
Sunday is where I saw the definition of “tireless”. These folks began difficult, sometimes heartbreaking work at 8am and didn’t stop until at least 12 hours later. Until every patient was picked up and every cage was clean. They took care of over 100 patients that weekend.
I saw puppies being born, I saw people who cared so much about their pets, I saw folks working without a lunch break to get every pet fixed and vaccinated. Even after being told by a veteran volunteer “I cry for about an hour on the drive home after clinics like these”, I thought, no, I’m not going cry. I feel good about this. I saw a lot of people who love their pets, finally able to afford vaccinations and spaying/neutering. Finally there would be no more unexpected puppies on their homestead to either feed, or try to give away, or worse. I didn’t become emotional all weekend, except while watching the newly-three-legged dog try to walk, and those were tears of hope for that guy.
But at the end of the last day as I’m looking at the photos I took and thinking about the puppies I watched being born, and the dogs I carried, walked, and comforted, tears finally came. A mixed bag of feelings of gratitude for those who work tirelessly (compared to me, I only work until I’m tired) and sorrow that there aren’t enough vets for the whole world of companion animals. Despite the sad situations, my advice to others is to focus on the goodness you see. What you focus on expands, and by paying attention to those who help, more will appear.
